July 1, 2005: Headlines: Figures: COS - Tanzania: Politics: State Government: Toledo Blade: Toledo Blade says Bob Taft has been unable or unwilling to move his administration away from a pay-to-play system that begets mediocre appointments to key public boards and agencies

Toledo Blade says Bob Taft has been unable or unwilling to move his administration away from a pay-to-play system that begets mediocre appointments to key public boards and agencies

If there is a common theme in our criticisms of Mr. Taft's nearly seven years as governor, it has been his blind allegiance to an old political game that his party has embraced as part of the GOP mantra. It's all about rewarding friends and benefactors, and if that sounds like the same game played in Washington by the Bush Administration, it is hardly a coincidence. Ohio Governor Robert Taft served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Tanzania in the 1960's.

SO MUCH damaging information has emerged about misfeasance in the highest office in the state that it might be easy to forget that the governor's record in other areas is shamefully inadequate as well - particularly the poor quality of his appointments, especially to the University of Toledo board of trustees.

But we haven't forgotten.

It becomes clear with each passing year that Bob Taft has been unable or unwilling to move his administration away from a pay-to-play system that begets mediocre appointments to key public boards and agencies.

If there is a common theme in our criticisms of Mr. Taft's nearly seven years as governor, it has been his blind allegiance to an old political game that his party has embraced as part of the GOP mantra. It's all about rewarding friends and benefactors, and if that sounds like the same game played in Washington by the Bush Administration, it is hardly a coincidence.

Can there be anybody in Ohio who remains unaware of the staggering challenges facing public higher education in this state? And who can forget the stunning blow to morale at UT and the embarrassment engendered there by the short but disastrous presidency of Vik Kapoor?

Mr. Kapoor was appointed president by the UT board in November, 1998, ironically just two weeks after Mr. Taft won his first race for governor.

Soon after Mr. Kapoor became the university's chief executive, it became evident that he was not up to the job. He ruled by intimidation, driving off administrators and faculty, and did lasting harm to the university. Nineteen months after his indiscriminate paranoia and reign of error began, he was gone.

If ever UT needed citizen oversight and leadership to help a lackluster institution perform in a manner its students and the community deserved, it was during and after the Kapoor debacle.

Did Mr. Taft seize an obvious opportunity to set the university on a sounder course? Did anything change? Evidently not. His board appointments have been as undistinguished as many of those made before him by previous Gov. George Voinovich.

It's the same system that put an individual such as Tom Noe on the board of Bowling Green State University and ultimately on the Ohio Board of Regents. Mr. Noe would seem to have been singularly unqualified for either board, but he certainly was generous with his checks.

This pay-to-play quid pro quo has become so pervasive over the course of 15 years of virtual one-party domination of state government that most Ohioans under the age of 25 do not remember it any other way. We do not absolve the Democrats of such tactics. But the fact that both parties do it does not relieve either of blame.

Governor Taft's great-grandfather was president and later chief justice, his grandfather a United States senator, and his father a congressman and senator. They are still regarded with respect in Ohio politics for their contributions to public service. Like most politicians they were partisan, but they never lost sight of their grander responsibilities to the citizens of their home state and nation.

Unfortunately, the current governor makes it clear, by virtue of the appointments he has made to the UT board - with little or no input from those in a position to be helpful - that it's a lesson he has not learned.

Though Coingate will be the most devastating memory of the Bob Taft years, it will hardly be the only one tarnishing his legacy.

When this story was posted in June 2005, this was on the front page of PCOL:

The Peace Corps LibraryPeace Corps Online is proud to announce that the Peace Corps Library is now available online. With over 30,000 index entries in 500 categories, this is the largest collection of Peace Corps related stories in the world. From Acting to Zucchini, you can find hundreds of stories about what RPCVs with your same interests or from your Country of Service are doing today. If you have a web site, support the "Peace Corps Library" and link to it today.

American Taboo: A Peace Corps TragedyReturned Volunteers met with author Philip Weiss in Baltimore on June 18 to discuss the murder of Peace Corps Volunteer Deborah Gardner. Weiss was a member of a panel that included three psychiatrists and a criminal attorney. Meanwhile, the Seattle U.S. Attorney's office announced that Dennis Priven cannot be retried for the murder. "We do not believe this case can be prosecuted by anyone, not only us, but in any other jurisdiction in the United States." Read background on the case here.

June 14: Peace Corps suspends Haiti programAfter Uzbekistan, the Peace Corps has announced the suspension of a second program this month - this time in Haiti. Background: The suspension comes after a US Embassy warning, a request from Tom Lantos' office, and the program suspension last year. For the record: PCOL supports Peace Corps' decision to suspend the two programs and commends the agency for the efficient way PCVs were evacuated safely. Our only concern now is with the placement of evacuated PCVs and the support they receive after interrupted service.

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Story Source: Toledo Blade

This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; Figures; COS - Tanzania; Politics; State Government

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